A new morning dawned.

I rubbed my eyes groggily, waking up to the gentle touch of warm morning sunlight.

Although I had gotten used to sleeping anywhere during my travels and time in the wilderness, it still couldn’t compare to sleeping in a proper bed.

“Mmm...”

It had been so long since I’d felt the comfort of a soft bed and blanket that I didn’t want to get up.

I hugged the blanket tightly and buried my face in the pillow, savoring the warmth.

This is what they call small but certain happiness.

Honestly, I wanted to stay wrapped in this cozy feeling forever, but...

“I need to get up…”

I couldn’t just keep lazing around.

Reluctantly, I climbed out of my comfortable nest, grabbed the cape I had left by the bed, and stepped out of the room.

“Oh, miss. You’re up?”

I nodded.

I lightly acknowledged the innkeeper’s greeting as I glanced around the inn.

It seemed Journey hadn’t woken up yet, since there was no sign of her.

“Would you like breakfast?”

“Do you have any meat?”

“If you’ve got the money, I can make anything for you!”

“I’ve got plenty of money. Just make me the best thing you’ve got, with minimal vegetables.”

“Got it! Just one serving?”

“Hmm... better make it two.”

I wasn’t sure when Journey would wake up, but if she saw me eating alone, she’d probably complain.

A wise person prepares for what’s to come and prevents unnecessary hassles.

Today’s me is a little more mature than yesterday’s me.

“We just got fresh orc meat this morning. Is that fine? A lot of customers don’t like monster meat.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

While I didn’t mind monster meat, there were definitely some kinds I wouldn’t touch.

I wouldn’t eat anything that looked too close to human or anything so grotesque that I couldn’t bring myself to put it in my mouth.

Oh, and tasteless meat was a no-go too.

Sure, there are people who enjoy weird delicacies, but I’m not one of them.

By those standards, orc meat was in the “edible” category for me.

Unlike the orcs described in the fantasy novels from my previous life—who were more like other humanoid races—this world’s orcs were more like highly dangerous wild boars. They even looked almost identical to pigs.

Their intelligence was about on par with boars too.

And more importantly…

“Orc meat tastes good.”

There’s a reason why orc meat is expensive.

Even though they’re not particularly strong, being monsters means they’re harder to hunt than boars, but their meat is that much tastier.

I really don’t get why people dislike it.

“You’ve got good taste, miss!”

The innkeeper nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

Considering Journey had eaten cockatrice meat before and had even brought me a sandwich made with orc ham, I figured she’d enjoy breakfast today too.

After waiting a little while, the innkeeper brought out the food just as Journey opened the door to her room and came out.

“Good morning!”

Journey noticed me and bounced over, lowering her voice to ask,

“Did you sleep well, Kana?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow... Did you order all this?”

The smell was amazing...

Journey sniffed the air as the delicious aroma of grilled orc steak filled the room, making her mouth water.

“Eat.”

“Oh, really?! Thanks!”

Journey immediately sat down and grabbed a knife.

Watching her, I picked up my own knife and cut into the meat.

Even without much effort, the meat sliced apart easily under the blade.

The grilling was perfect, but now to see how it tasted.

Mmm.

Chewing slowly—

“This is good.”

Well, meat this well-cooked couldn’t possibly taste bad.

The sauce poured over the meat wasn’t too salty or too sweet; it was just right.

I hadn’t bothered researching much before choosing this inn—the first one I saw—but it seemed I’d found a good spot after all.

“With good ingredients, the food is bound to taste good!”

The innkeeper beamed as he leaned against the counter, watching us eat.

“Ingredients? What kind of meat is this?”

“It’s orc meat.”

“...Orc?”

Journey’s hand froze mid-bite.

“You mean... like, the orc monster?”

“Yes, the monster.”

Clang!

Journey’s knife and fork clattered out of her hands.

“O-orc meat... I’ve been eating orc meat all this time? Ugh…! Wait, what? How is this any different from cockatrice meat? Hey! That’s totally different...!”

“Miss, is something wrong? Does the meat taste bad?”

“N-no! I just… I’ve never had orc meat before, but it’s so good I just... got overwhelmed.”

“Hahaha! There are people who’ve never tried orc meat, but there’s no one who’s eaten it only once. It’s pricey and hard to come by, so you’re lucky!”

“A-ahaha...”

Journey’s laughter sounded like she was crying inside, and I just shrugged.

What’s her deal?

“Tell me if you need more. I’ll be happy to bring seconds!”

“N-no, I couldn’t... This is too rare to eat for free…”

“Don’t be shy! I’m just happy to finally have customers who appreciate good meat. Those Apostle types tend to get scared as soon as they see something like this. It’s ridiculous.”

“I’m an Apostle too, you know… Can’t I just decline politely?”

Munch.

While Journey was busy talking, I focused on eating the steak.

It was too good not to.

Why would anyone waste time fussing when it’s better to eat it while it’s still warm?

 

After finishing breakfast, we left the inn where we had stayed for the night.

As we turned into a quiet alley, Journey bent over, dry heaving.

“Ugh... I think I’m going to throw up.”

She’d been gagging since earlier. Was she feeling sick?

Journey’s voice dripped with resentment as she spoke.

“Kana… You should’ve told me it was orc meat…”

“Huh?”

I tilted my head, confused.

Was she really making such a fuss over eating orc meat?

“Didn’t you like it?”

“I did. But—No! The taste isn’t the problem!”

I kindly corrected her.

“The important thing is.”

“The taste isn’t the issue!”

“Then what is?”

“The fact that it was orc meat...!”

“So? You’ve eaten it before.”

“...When?”

At that, I mimed holding something long and biting into it.

A sandwich.

“The ham you ate last time, that was made from orc.”

Sadly, my tongue isn’t sharp enough to tell what food is made from just by tasting it.

But I could tell that the ham from last time was orc, because orc meat has a distinct flavor that sets it apart from regular pork.

I couldn’t imagine where Journey had even found such ham, but she had a knack for it.

“That ham was made from orc...?”

Journey looked utterly shocked, like she hadn’t even known what she had bought.

For a moment, she was speechless.

Of course, I was also dumbfounded.

‘How do you not know what you’re eating?’

It was lucky that it was edible. What if it had been something poisonous?

Though I suppose no one would sell poisoned food on the street, there’s always a first time for everything.

Is this what they mean by a "ditsy charm"?

Leaving behind the clueless Journey, I walked on.

We had a long way to go, and I didn’t have time to waste on her antics.

“Wait up!”

We stepped out of the narrow alley into the main street.

While we had eaten, quite some time had passed, and now the streets were filled with people.

“Where are we going?”

“To the merchant guild.”

I didn’t stop walking as I replied.

I had thought about buying horses or a carriage, but saving money where possible is important.

The plan was to join a caravan heading toward Sedes or its surroundings. If no good options appeared, I’d consider purchasing transportation later.

“Leave it to me!”

Journey puffed out her chest confidently.

“…”

Sure, she might be a mercenary, but I wasn’t exactly brimming with confidence in her.

She hadn’t been all that reliable to begin with, and after seeing her airheaded behavior earlier, what little trust I had left vanished.

Journey, noticing my doubtful look, urged me to follow her and confidently strode ahead.

We soon arrived at the Liberi Ordo Branch.

Wait a second... wasn’t there something wrong?

“I’m not a mercenary.”

Setting aside the fact that I didn’t like mercenaries, how could an outsider like me take on a mercenary contract?

There was a reason I had planned to go directly to the merchant guild myself.

“Uh... but it should be fine, right?”

As I expected, she hadn’t thought that far ahead. The confidence in her voice was quickly fading.

“…I’ll figure it out!”

Whatever she had in mind, Journey clenched her fist with determination and dashed inside the Liberi branch, leaving me outside with my arms crossed, waiting for her to return.

“…”

Time passed.

Gradually, people on the street began to take notice of me, their curiosity growing.

“Isn’t that...?”

“Looks like it, right?”

“Why are they... here?”

“...It’s bothering me.”

What’s with all the whispers? Haven’t they seen someone wearing a hood before?

No, wait. Looking closely, most of the people murmuring are Apostles.

I guess my reputation has already spread here.

Luckily, none of the annoying types seem willing to start trouble, probably because they’re still afraid of the city guards.

“Kana...!”

Journey came bouncing back out.

“I did it!”

“…It worked?”

“Yeah!”

I couldn’t believe it actually worked…

Maybe the Liberi guild is more slapdash in its operations than I thought.

“So, what’s the destination?”

“Liberi!”

Journey beamed as she announced our destination—Liberi, the free mercenary city.

“Liberi...”

It was in the northeastern part of the Empire, if I remembered correctly.

It was a bit far from the Sedes Holy Kingdom to the south, but it wasn’t completely out of the way.

“When do we leave?”

“Um, in 10…”

“10 o’clock?”

We didn’t have much time, but since we didn’t have anything left to pack, it should be fine.

But Journey wasn’t finished.

“…We’ve got 9 minutes left.”

“…?”

“We need to run.”

Before she even finished speaking, Journey grabbed my hand and took off down the street.

“What the...?! Watch where you’re going!”

“My shoulder! Ow, my shoulder’s gonna break!”

“Ow ow... Sorry! We’re in a huge hurry! Ahhh! Sorry!”

Sigh...

Of course. I should’ve known things wouldn’t go smoothly.

I watched as Journey, running recklessly, knocked into every passerby in her path.

How did she expect her shoulders to survive this?